Brazil approves import of China’s Sinovac vaccine

Brazil’s health regulator authorized the import of a Chinese-produced vaccine after claims from President Jair Bolsonaro that the country lacked the creditability to develop a cure for the coronavirus.

The Butantan Institute, a Sao Paulo research center that has partnered with Sinovac Biotech Ltd, was granted an “exceptional” permission to bring six million doses of the unregistered Coronavac drug into the country for phase three trials, the Brazilian Health Surveillance Agency, or Anvisa, said in a statement Friday afternoon.

The trial has become the latest flash point in the fight between local leadership and Bolsonaro over the handling of the outbreak. The president said earlier this week that his government would not purchase the drug due “to its origin.”

Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria, a staunch Bolsonaro critic, said not proceeding with the Sinovac trial would be “criminal” and accused the president of politicizing the vaccine. Lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia presented a united front with Doria during a press conference Friday, calling him an “ally” and saying that he hoped that the president would reconsider his position.

The South American nation has faced one of the gravest pandemic tolls, registering nearly 156,000 deaths and over 5,333,000 cases.